§ MR. BLACKI beg to ask the First Lord of the Treasury, with reference to his proposal for Redistribution, whether the Government will grant the Return as to non-resident electors in the constituencies of the United Kingdom standing on the Paper for to-day; and, if the Government declines, can he state the reason for such declination.
§ MR. A. J. BALFOURThe object of the Government, in the Resolutions in which their scheme was embodied, was to bring in a Redistribution Bill, not a Reform Bill. The Return which the hon. Gentleman asks for might be a very proper preliminary to a Reform Bill, but it is extremely costly and extremely difficult to make, and I do not think it would be worth while either going through the labour or incurring the expense for a measure which this Government has no intention of introducing. The Return referred to is as follows—Parliamentary Constituencies (Non-Resident Electors, etc., United Kingdom). Return showing (1) the number of Voters in each Constituency in Great Britain and Ireland who appear in the last adjusted Voters Roll as residing beyond the bounds of the Constituency; and (2) the number of Ownership Voters in each of the Boroughs in England and Wales who vote in respect of their ownership in the adjoining county (supplementary to Return relative to Parliamentary Constituencies, etc., presented 21st February.)